Out of the Bottle: Wine Flavor
A researcher from Cornell details the chemical composition of wine’s diverse flavor profiles.
Building a Synth, Bit by Bit
A new tool and toy from littleBits teaches you how synthesizers work while you make electronic music.
When Water Flows Uphill
In the Leidenfrost Effect, a water droplet will float on a layer its own vapor if heated to certain temperature—and these physicists discovered a new means of manipulating the hot droplets.
The Other Golden Rule
Did you know that most mammals, from a house cat to an elephant, take roughly the same amount of time to urinate?
The Inner Beauty of Naked Mole Rats
How do naked mole rats live to 30 years without getting cancer? Research by Vera Gorbunova and Andrei Seluanov of the University of Rochester shows how these aesthetically challenged creatures live long, cancer-free lives.
Give Yourself A Hand With DIY Gripper
What high-tech materials are required for making a robotic hand that can pick up almost anything? Coffee grounds and a latex balloon.
Desktop Diaries: Jill Tarter
As the SETI (Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence) Institute’s first employee, Tarter has accumulated E.T.-themed office ornaments for the last 30 years—including a bottle of wine to be opened “only upon detection of Extraterrestrial signal.”